Mr. Ahmed Abdelmonein

Doctoral Student Research Award 2013-2014
University of Alberta (Edmonton, AB)

Supervisor

Dr. Scot H. Simpson

Dr. Ahmed Abdelmoneim and his team examined if people taking Diabetea® (glyburide) and Diamicron® (gliclazide) have different risks of having a heart attack. Information from these studies will help people with diabetes and their healthcare providers better understand any possible safety concerns with these two drugs, and make decisions based on the benefits and risks of diabetes medications.

Dr. Carol T. L. Huang

Operating Grant 2012-2015
University of Calgary (Calgary, AB)

Dr. Huang and her team found that the pregnancy hormone, prolactin, helps keep normal blood sugars in pregnant mice by causing beta cells to divide, increasing insulin production. Based on this discovery, Dr. Huang’s laboratory team tested if prolactin, or related hormones, could be used to treat or reverse type 1 and type 2 diabetes.

Dr. Jun-Li Liu

Dr. Liu investigated the anti-diabetic effects of bariatric surgery (a weight loss treatment) in rats and whether or not part of that effect is due to an increased expression of Reg proteins in the intestine and/or pancreas, which promote beta cell expansion and insulin secretion. This research could help shed light on the benefits induced by bariatric surgery and improve treatment for type 2 diabetes.

Dr. Jonathan Z. Long

Supervisor

Dr. Bruce M. Spiegelman

Dr. Long and his team studied specific brown and beige fat cells to learn more about how they increase metabolism and protect the body against obesity and diabetes. The team created an inventory of all the parts of these cells, which provides a new resource for researchers to apply. Through this process, they discovered a hormone, called meteorin-like, which regulates the development of beige fat. This hormone may provide a new target for future diabetes treatments.

Dr. Arturo Mancini

Supervisor

Dr. Vincent Poitout

Dr. Mancini investigated a family of molecules – called GPCRs – that help regulate beta cell insulin release. Dr. Mancini specifically looked at two GPCRs whose function is unknown. This research helps identify if and how these molecules control insulin production and release in beta cells and if they allow beta cells to survive longer.

Dr. Joanne E. McBane

Supervisor

Dr. Erik J. Suuronen

Dr. Joanne McBane’s goal was to use a natural protein (collagen) to increase blood flow to transplanted islet cells (a treatment for type 1 diabetes). If successful, the collagen implant developed from this project could allow more people with type 1 diabetes to remain insulin independent after islet transplantation.

Dr. Erin E. Mulvihill

Supervisor

Dr. Daniel J. Drucker

New therapies based on GLP-1 ( glucagon-like peptide-1) action have recently been approved for the treatment of type 2 diabetes. Dr. Mulvihill investigated how these drugs influenced the production of intestinal lipoproteins, and whether the actions of these agents can influence cardiovascular risk. This research could help find new ways to prevent the over-production and export of lipids from intestinal cells and to decrease the risk of type 2 diabetes and atherosclerosis (hardening of the arteries).

Dr. Rémi Rabasa-Lhoret

Dr. Rémi Rabasa‐ Lhoret and his team have created a closed‐loop system (CLS) (or “wearable artificial pancreas”), including a continuous glucose sensor to read blood glucose changes, an infusion pump to provide insulin (single‐hormone CLS) or insulin and glucagon (dual‐hormone CLS), and a computer program that uses information from the sensor to tell the pump how much of each hormone to give. In this study, Dr. Rabasa‐ Lhoret and his team compared the dual‐hormone CLS, the single‐hormone CLS and the traditional pump therapy over a controlled period of 24 hours to determine the benefits of each system. The CLS has a great potential to improve people’s quality of life, health outcomes, promote physical activities and lift the burden of diabetes management from the patients and their health care providers.

Dr. C. Bruce Verchere

Operating Grant 2011-2014
University of British Columbia (Vancouver, BC)

Dr. Bruce Verchere found that amyloid (a protein-like build-up) quickly forms in transplanted human islets and may be an important cause of beta cell death, contributing to transplant failure. His research aimed to determine if stopping amyloid formation in transplanted human islets will protect beta cells and help them survive and function. This research may lead to a new way to help transplanted human islets survive and function, and may improve success of clinical islet transplantation in people with type 1 diabetes.